ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Sean Payton raised a few eyebrows Saturday when, during an interview with NFL Network, the Broncos head coach said the team would explore signing veteran free agent Taysom Hill.

On Monday, though, Payton said the Broncos are in “no hurry right now” to get Hill into their building. Payton, who coached the multi-position Hill for five seasons in New Orleans, noted that he would visit with the 35-year-old this weekend in Canton, Ohio, where both will be attending the Hall of Fame induction of former Saints quarterback Drew Brees.

“We’ll see where he’s at and kind of go from there,” Payton said. “The key thing is his health and where he’s at mentally. I don’t want to assume that he still wants to play. I haven’t had a chance to talk with him.”

Hill suffered a torn ACL late in the 2024 season. His repair surgery was performed by Dr. Karim Meijer, the Broncos’ team physician. Payton noted that Hill has since been to Denver for “two or three” follow-up appointments.

Hill, who turns 36 later this month, had a limited role with the Saints in 2025 after returning from the injury. He played in 25 percent of the offense’s snaps, his lowest rate since 2019, and averaged only 3.3 yards per touch. Still, Payton and his staff are well-versed in how Hill, who has more than 1,000 career yards as a passer, receiver and rusher, can be used.

“He’s super unique,” said Broncos tight end Adam Trautman, who played with Hill for several seasons in New Orleans. “He can do pretty much everything. He’s the true definition of a Swiss Army knife. But, yeah, we’ll see. Obviously, if he comes here, he’d obviously be a great addition. You know he’d fit the culture.”

Hill, coincidentally, has played only one NFL game in Denver during his eight-year career. That came Nov. 29, 2020, when he was the quarterback for the Saints in a 31-3 victory against a Broncos team that started practice-squad wide receiver Kendall Hinton at quarterback after the team’s real quarterbacks were ruled out for violations of the league’s COVID-19 policy that season.

A member of the NBA championship-winning New York Knicks, naturally, Josh Hart is a Yankees fan. However, his connection to the Bronx Bombers runs much deeper.

His great-uncle on his father’s side is the late Elston Howard, who was the first Black player on the Yankees’ roster — eight years after Jackie Robinson broke MLB’s color barrier in 1947. Howard’s No. 32 has been retired since 1984, and Hart has thrown out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium on a number of occasions, including most recently alongside Jalen Brunson to celebrate the Knicks’ title.

With the NBA offseason in full swing, Hart, like many Yankees fans, is eagerly waiting for the club to make a move or two ahead of the 6 p.m. trade deadline. Already the Yankees have added power hitter Luis García Jr. in a deal with the Washington Nationals, but more is always welcome, especially in New York, where every season is World Series or bust.

Come on please be a big day for my Yanks

— Josh Hart (@joshhart) August 3, 2026

So far, New York has not heeded the call, leaving Hart waiting in anticipation.

In the time since he wished for a “big day” for the Yankees, he turned his attention to episode seven of HBO’s House of the Dragon, before circling back to the still-silent Yankees.

“Guess it wasn’t a big day after all,” Hart later wrote on social media.

As the clock ticked toward the 6 p.m. cutoff, “there is still time,” Hart acknowledged. New York could use a number of upgrades for its roster, with an offensive-minded catcher at the top of that list.

That is especially true after the AL East has loaded up on talent, from the Red Sox landing Adley Rutschman to the Rays swinging a deal for Liam Hicks.

Mateo Kovacic says he will be staying at Manchester City next season despite speculation about his future.

The Croatia midfielder, 32, has one year left on his current deal and had been linked with a move to Inter Milan, among other clubs.

But he says that he has spoken to new City head coach Enzo Maresca and is preparing for the new season at the Etihad Stadium.

“We spoke a little bit, of course,” Kovacic told the media during City’s pre-season trip to Hong Kong. “He counts on me, and then in the end it’s always on you to show your best, to be in your best shape.

“For me, it was important to hear that the club counts on me, that he counts me, and now it’s on me to show my best. I didn’t feel any question marks from them.”

Kovacic missed the majority of last season after undergoing Achilles surgery twice, once in June 2025 and then again in November, and believes that the increasingly physical nature of the Premier League contributed to his injury.

“When you come to the national team and play at the World Cup, you see the pace is much slower, not so physical, that every duel you have to give it everything. I think I was injured because (after) a long time in the Premier League, it’s not easy to play every game 100 per cent. It’s definitely the toughest league, every game is suffering,” he said.

“Maybe also because of years of playing and training at the highest level, it can happen that the body at one point says, ‘I can’t take it anymore’. And maybe the rest did me good as well, to just be a little bit away from football, to reset my body and that I can start again.”

City will play two more fixtures on their pre-season tour of Asia this summer, first against K-League All Stars on Wednesday and then Atletico Madrid on Sunday in Seoul, the South Korean capital.

They then face Arsenal in the Community Shield on August 16, before kicking off the Premier League season at home to Bournemouth a week later.

‘Kovacic well-suited to Maresca’s style’

Kovacic could be a handy option in the midfield for Maresca next season, especially with uncertainty around Rodri, Nico Gonzalez and Tijjani Reijnders.

He seems well-suited to Maresca’s style and especially the current demands of the Premier League, with his ball-carrying and press resistance.

The likelihood is that he would not be a regular starter next season but could still make important contributions across the different competitions that City will be competing for.

With his contract expiring next summer, it would be no surprise if this were to be his last season at the club. After missing almost a year of football with his Achilles injury, he is pain-free and looking to make a big contribution.